If the New York Giants are going to face the Los Angeles Rams without one of their starting cornerbacks, they’ll be glad not to see All-Pro wide receiver Puka Nacua on Monday Night Football.
The Rams officially declared their top target inactive minutes before the game at SoFi Stadium in Week 2. Nacua’s hip injury was confirmed by NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
His update was swiftly followed by Giants.com Managing Editor Dan Salomone releasing Big Blue’s list of inactives. The list includes starting corner Deonte Banks, safety Jason Pinnock and defensive tackle Darius Alexander.
RAMS INACTIVES ▪️WR C.J. Daniels ▪️OL Bill Murray ▪️S Kamren Kinchens ▪️WR Jordan Whittington ▪️WR Puka Nacua ▪️QB Ty
Not having to go against Nacua takes the sting out of Banks being unable to go for an already suspect Giants‘ secondary. He was enjoying a surprising career revival after regaining a starting job this offseason, but Banks couldn’t work his way through a calf problem before the game against the Rams.
Banks will be disappointed, and his disappointment will be shared by Alexander. The former third-round draft pick continues to be left out for different reasons.
Deonte Banks Offset by Rams’ Puka Nacua News
Banks did what he could to make the cut and get involved. Including undertaking “a pregame workout with Allison Boudreau, the team’s rehab coordinator,” per Dan Duggan of The Athletic.
This was a positive development, but as Duggan pointed out, it can be “Very dicey to try to interpret a workout. Unlike Nabers last week, he didn’t fully ramp up. Now, that seems like a bad sign but maybe they confirmed he’s good.”
In a potential sliding doors moment, Duggan noticed Nacua was involved in his own workout with Rams’ trainers. It was an ominous sign for the Giants and their defensive backfield sans Banks, but fate, it seems, is on the side of the G-Men, at least for the moment.
Nacua is a roving mismatch against any type of coverage. His physicality and after-catch acceleration would’ve posed huge problems for Banks’ likely replacement, rookie Colton Hood.
The second-round pick in the 2026 NFL draft still faces the possibility of trying to coral another All-Pro wideout. Prolific veteran Davante Adams remains a contested-catch machine and a wonderfully nuanced route-runner.
Adams’ presence means the Giants’ best chance of upsetting the Rams is to pressure ageing quarterback Matthew Stafford. That’s why Alexander’s omission is a mild surprise.
Giants Defense Could Use Pressure from Interior
Alexander’s having a hard time winning over new defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson and John Harbaugh. They want him to develop some nastiness in key areas of his game, but the former Toledo standout possesses one useful skill.
Notably, Alexander can push the pocket from the inside. That would be useful against 38-year-old Stafford, who tends to stay static in the pocket.
Exploiting this weakness is how the Giants punish the quarterback who got away. First, Big Blue’s defense needs to stop a Rams running game powered behind three-tight end personnel.
That formation is perhaps why Harbaugh elected to sit Alexander again, in favor of bigger bodies up front. Getting this scheme choice right could do more to determine a winner than worrying about who covers Adams in Banks’ absence.
Giants Get Puka Nacua Update, Amid Deonte Banks News vs. Rams